25th June, 2024
By Kazeem Ugbodaga
Austria claimed a shocking 3-2 win over Netherlands on Tuesday to qualify for the round of 16 as Group D winner at the expense of France.
France were forced to a 1-1 draw by Poland and came second in the group while Netherlands will qualify as one of the best losers.
Austria took the lead six minutes into the game after Donyell Malen turned the ball into his own net.
Netherlands equalised few minutes after the restart. Xavi Simons teed up Cody Gakpo inside the box and he curled the ball into the right side of the net and past Patrick Pentz.
In the 59th minute, Austria were in front again. Romano Schmid scored a beautiful goal. He climbed high to meet a cross and found the back of the net with a bullet header that went into the bottom left corner.
Netherlands equalised again in the 7thth minute through Memphis Depay. The referee initially ruled out the goal for offside, but changed his mind after VAR’s review.
Five minutes later, Austria scored their third goal. Christoph Baumgartner teed up Marcel Sabitzer inside the box and he slammed the ball into the roof of the net and past Bart Verbruggen.
Earlier in the game, Tijjani Reijnders had a great chance. He picked up an inch-perfect pass inside the box and missed the net well wide off the right post.
Donyell Malen had a golden chance to score for Netherlands. He met a cross in the box and found some space for a shot. He produced an inaccurate effort that went wide off the right post.